MSNBC contributor Malcolm Nance gave a troubling description of Facebook’s relationship to its users on Wednesday morning, comparing the social network and its latest user privacy issue to ’70s dystopian thriller “Soylent Green.”
“A better analogy of what Facebook is and the people who are on Facebook would come from that old movie ‘Soylent Green,’ which was the food stuff that everybody ate in a dystopian world and we found out that Soylent Green was people,” Nance said on “MSNBC Live With Craig Melvin,” as he addressed a question from Kasie Hunt.
“You are the consumable of Facebook,” he continued. “The pictures of your mothers. The things that you say in private to other people. The communications that you share, those are being sold. And you think you have a measure of privacy. You don’t.”
Nance was reacting to a bombshell report from The New York Times that revealed that Facebook had given more than 100 companies special access to private user data — including giving companies like Spotify and Netflix access to private user messages. Netflix and Spotify, in statements to TheWrap, said they did not access private user messages, despite having the ability to do so.
Facebook, in a blog post late on Tuesday, confirmed that it had given privileged access to partner apps, but only with user consent and merely to help connect users.
“Did partners get access to messages? Yes. But people had to explicitly sign in to Facebook first to use a partner’s messaging feature,” Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, director of developer platforms and programs at Facebook, wrote in the blog post.
If you haven’t seen the 1973 flick, it stars Charlton Heston and has a 70 percent audience approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
Jon Levine contributed to this report.
10 Most Shocking Russian Troll Posts on Facebook and Instagram, From Hillary Clinton to Police Brutality (Photos)
The U.S. House Intelligence Committee on Thursday released more than 3,500 advertisements and posts spread by Russian trolls before and after the 2016 U.S. election. Below is a look at 10 of the most shocking examples that stood out from Congress's reveal.
House Intelligence Committee
Many posts pushed the narrative that Hillary Clinton would confiscate guns if she were elected President.
House Intelligence Committee
This graphic meme painted cops as KKK members attacking a young black child.
House Intelligence Committee
Only "sissies" and other undesirables wouldn't support Donald Trump, many of the memes said.
House Intelligence Committee
President Obama was a "pawn" and "traitor" in the hands of "Arabian Sheikhs," said one 2016 ad.
House Intelligence Committee
The "Black Matters US" page touched on hot button issues like police shootings.
House Intelligence Committee
The "Army of Jesus" page shared a bible verse, along with this meme.
House Intelligence Committee
Russian trolls also used Instagram to spread sponsored political memes.
House Intelligence Committee
The "Blacktivist" page routinely shared memes on Colin Kaepernick and other football players kneeling during the national anthem.
House Intelligence Committee
"Heart of Texas" routinely posted on "Killary Rotten Clinton," and threatened to secede from the union if she won the election.
House Intelligence Committee
The "Being Patriotic" page labeled ex-cons as "Obama voters."
House Intelligence Committee
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Congress just released 3,500 posts touching on a myriad of topics
The U.S. House Intelligence Committee on Thursday released more than 3,500 advertisements and posts spread by Russian trolls before and after the 2016 U.S. election. Below is a look at 10 of the most shocking examples that stood out from Congress's reveal.